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1 | AN ACT concerning criminal law.
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2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, | ||||||
3 | represented in the General Assembly:
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4 | Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Drug | ||||||
5 | School Act. | ||||||
6 | Section 5. Findings; purpose. The General Assembly finds as | ||||||
7 | follows: | ||||||
8 | (1) One of the many objectives of the Illinois criminal | ||||||
9 | justice system is individual rehabilitation. | ||||||
10 | (2) The incarceration of nonviolent drug offenders | ||||||
11 | with families breaks the family unit. | ||||||
12 | (3) The recidivism rate of nonviolent drug offenders in | ||||||
13 | Illinois is 53%. | ||||||
14 | (4) Nonviolent drug offenders are in need of | ||||||
15 | alternatives to incarceration such as counseling and | ||||||
16 | treatment. | ||||||
17 | (5) Drug addiction is recognized as a health issue | ||||||
18 | around the country. | ||||||
19 | (6) The Cook County State's Attorney drug school | ||||||
20 | program has a success rate of over 85%. | ||||||
21 | (7) The State of Illinois spends $22,607 on one adult | ||||||
22 | incarceration. | ||||||
23 | (8) The State of Illinois will save more than |
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1 | $17,000,000 if treatment programs are offered in lieu of | ||||||
2 | incarceration. | ||||||
3 | The purpose of this Act is to establish, subject to | ||||||
4 | appropriation, a drug school program for nonviolent drug | ||||||
5 | offenders statewide modeled after the Cook County State's | ||||||
6 | Attorney drug school program.
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7 | Section 10. Definition. As used in this Act, "drug school" | ||||||
8 | means a drug intervention and education program established and | ||||||
9 | administered by the State's Attorney's Office of a particular | ||||||
10 | county as an alternative to traditional prosecution. A drug | ||||||
11 | school shall include, but not be limited to, the following core | ||||||
12 | components: | ||||||
13 | (1) No less than 10 and no more than 20 hours of drug | ||||||
14 | education delivered by an organization licensed, certified | ||||||
15 | or otherwise authorized by the Illinois Department of Human | ||||||
16 | Services, Division of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse to | ||||||
17 | provide treatment, intervention, education or other such | ||||||
18 | services. This education is to be delivered at least once | ||||||
19 | per week at a class of no less than one hour and no greater | ||||||
20 | than 4 hours, and with a class size no larger than 40 | ||||||
21 | individuals. | ||||||
22 | (2) Curriculum designed to present the harmful effects | ||||||
23 | of drug use on the individual, family and community, | ||||||
24 | including the relationship between drug use and criminal | ||||||
25 | behavior, as well as instruction regarding the application |
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1 | procedure for the sealing and expungement of records of | ||||||
2 | arrest and any other record of the proceedings of the case | ||||||
3 | for which the individual was mandated to attend the drug | ||||||
4 | school. | ||||||
5 | (3) Education regarding the practical consequences of | ||||||
6 | conviction and continued justice involvement. Such | ||||||
7 | consequences of drug use will include the negative | ||||||
8 | physiological, psychological, societal, familial, and | ||||||
9 | legal areas. Additionally, the practical limitations | ||||||
10 | imposed by a drug conviction on one's vocational, | ||||||
11 | educational, financial, and residential options will be | ||||||
12 | addressed. | ||||||
13 | (4) A process for monitoring and reporting attendance | ||||||
14 | such that the State's Attorney in the county where the drug | ||||||
15 | school is being operated is informed of class attendance no | ||||||
16 | more than 48 hours after each class. | ||||||
17 | (5) A process for capturing data on drug school | ||||||
18 | participants, including but not limited to total | ||||||
19 | individuals served, demographics of those individuals, | ||||||
20 | rates of attendance, and frequency of future justice | ||||||
21 | involvement for drug school participants and other data as | ||||||
22 | may be required by the Division of Alcoholism and Substance | ||||||
23 | Abuse.
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24 | Section 15. Authorization. | ||||||
25 | (a) Each State's Attorney may establish a drug school |
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1 | operated under the terms of this Act. The purpose of the drug | ||||||
2 | school shall be to provide an alternative to prosecution by | ||||||
3 | identifying drug-involved individuals for the purpose of | ||||||
4 | intervening with their drug use before their criminal | ||||||
5 | involvement becomes severe. The State's Attorney shall | ||||||
6 | identify criteria to be used in determining eligibility for the | ||||||
7 | drug school. Only those participants who successfully complete | ||||||
8 | the requirements of the drug school, as certified by the | ||||||
9 | State's Attorney, are eligible to apply for the sealing and | ||||||
10 | expungement of records of arrest and any other record of the | ||||||
11 | proceedings of the case for which the individual was mandated | ||||||
12 | to attend the drug school. | ||||||
13 | (b) A State's Attorney seeking to establish a drug school | ||||||
14 | may apply to the Division of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse of | ||||||
15 | the Illinois Department of Human Services ("DASA") for funding | ||||||
16 | to establish and operate a drug school within his or her | ||||||
17 | respective county. Nothing in this subsection shall prevent | ||||||
18 | State's Attorneys from establishing drug schools within their | ||||||
19 | counties without funding from DASA. | ||||||
20 | (c) Nothing in this Act shall prevent 2 or more State's | ||||||
21 | Attorneys from applying jointly for funding as provided in | ||||||
22 | subsection (b) for the purpose of establishing a drug school | ||||||
23 | that serves multiple counties. | ||||||
24 | (d) Drug schools established through funding from DASA | ||||||
25 | shall operate according to the guidelines established thereby | ||||||
26 | and the provisions of this Act.
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1 | Section 20. Eligibility. | ||||||
2 | (a) The State's Attorney, alone, in each county where a | ||||||
3 | drug school is established shall have the authority to | ||||||
4 | determine which individuals, who would otherwise be prosecuted | ||||||
5 | under the relevant provisions of Illinois law, may be eligible | ||||||
6 | to participate in the drug school in lieu of prosecution. | ||||||
7 | (b) A defendant may be admitted into drug school only upon | ||||||
8 | the agreement of the prosecutor and the defendant.
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9 | Section 25. Process.
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10 | (a) The State's Attorney, alone, in each county where a | ||||||
11 | drug school is established shall determine who is eligible to | ||||||
12 | participate in the drug school in lieu of prosecution. | ||||||
13 | Considerations in making such a determination shall include the | ||||||
14 | crime committed, the circumstances of the crime or of the | ||||||
15 | individual under consideration, and whether or not the State's | ||||||
16 | Attorney believes that the individual would benefit from | ||||||
17 | participation in the drug school. | ||||||
18 | (b) The judge shall inform the defendant that if the | ||||||
19 | defendant fails to meet the conditions of drug school, | ||||||
20 | eligibility to participate in the program may be revoked and | ||||||
21 | the defendant may be prosecuted under the criminal laws of this | ||||||
22 | State and sentenced as provided in the Unified Code of | ||||||
23 | Corrections for the crime charged. | ||||||
24 | (c) The defendant shall execute a written agreement as to |
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1 | his or her participation in the drug school program and shall | ||||||
2 | agree to all of the terms and conditions of the program, | ||||||
3 | including but not limited to the possibility of prosecution for | ||||||
4 | the crime charged for failing to abide or comply with the terms | ||||||
5 | of the drug school program or for any arrest incurred | ||||||
6 | subsequent to entry into the drug school program.
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7 | Section 30. Successful completion.
If an individual is | ||||||
8 | certified by the State's Attorney that he or she has | ||||||
9 | successfully completed the terms of the drug school, the | ||||||
10 | State's Attorney shall waive prosecution for the immediate | ||||||
11 | offense and discharge the case.
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12 | Section 35. Violations. Upon a violation of any of the | ||||||
13 | terms of the drug school, the State's Attorney may proceed with | ||||||
14 | prosecution as otherwise authorized under law.
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15 | Section 40. Appropriations to DASA. | ||||||
16 | (a) Moneys shall be appropriated to DASA to enable DASA (i) | ||||||
17 | to contract with Cook County, and (ii) counties other than Cook | ||||||
18 | County to reimburse for services delivered in those counties | ||||||
19 | under the county Drug School program. | ||||||
20 | (b) DASA shall establish rules and procedures for | ||||||
21 | reimbursements paid to the Cook County Treasurer which are not | ||||||
22 | subject to county appropriation and are not intended to | ||||||
23 | supplant monies currently expended by Cook County to operate |
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1 | its drug school program. Cook County is required to maintain | ||||||
2 | its efforts with regard to its drug school program. | ||||||
3 | (c) Expenditure of moneys under this Section is subject to | ||||||
4 | audit by the Auditor General. | ||||||
5 | (d) In addition to reporting required by DASA, State's | ||||||
6 | Attorneys receiving monies under this Section shall each report | ||||||
7 | separately to the General Assembly by January 1, 2008 and each | ||||||
8 | and every following January 1 for as long as the services are | ||||||
9 | in existence, detailing the need for continued services and | ||||||
10 | contain any suggestions for changes to this Act.
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